Join Better Portland for a casual morning coffee to connect with members, our community, and local business by supporting different businesses in the Portland area.

Ovation Coffee 3730 S Bond Ave

Bring a friend, no RSVP required!

Join Better Portland members for a lunchtime panel with local leaders focused on a single issue.

January: First Year Wins & Challenges: Portland Office of Small Business

It's been one year since the City of Portland launched its first Office of Small Business. What do they do? Who's behind the scenes? How can they help our members succeed in navigating small business challenges in Portland?

Panelists
Mitch Daugherty, Manager Portland Office of Small Business
Ciara Pressler, Better Portland & Pregame
Stephen Green, Better Portland & Vanport Studio

12:00 - Interview with Guests
12:30 - Q&A

Panelists

Mitch Daugherty currently serves as the manager for the City of Portland’s first-ever Office of Small Business at Prosper Portland, where he leads team building and citywide bureau coordination. This follows a decade as the co-founder and leader of Built Oregon, a nonprofit dedicated to scaling the state's consumer product ecosystem through accelerators, mentor networks, and over $300,000 in grants to Black-owned businesses. Earlier in his career, Mitch co-founded the digital strategy firm Morange Design, working with brands like Harbor Freight Tools and FOX, and got his start in entrepreneurship by co-founding Arizona Outback Adventures—a company that was eventually acquired by REI. He holds a degree in Wildlife Conservation Biology from Arizona State University.

Join Better Portland for a casual morning coffee to connect with members, our community, and local business by supporting both our favorite coffee shops and new undiscovered hangouts!

In December, we’re meeting up at La Perlita: a first-gen, POC-owned cafe in North Portland proudly serving Reforma Roasters coffee including cortaditos and the award-winning True Mexican Mocha.

La Perlita
5610 N Interstate Ave
Portland, OR 97217

Bring a friend, no RSVP required.

Join Better Portland members for a lunchtime panel with local leaders focused on a single issue.

November: Who’s Helping Businesses Scale?

Portland has a lot of resources for starting a business. But what about scaling a business from solo endeavor to economic impact? Join us to discuss what we need, what’s missing, and how Portland can get better when it comes to resources for entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Panelists
Melanie Strong, Next Ventures
Rick Turoczy, PIE
Stephen Green, Better Portland & Pitch Black

12:00 - Interview with Guests
12:30 - Q&A
12:45 - Small Group Discussion Breakouts

Panelists

Mel Strong started her career as a first grade teacher and journalist. A chance meeting at the Boston Marathon led to an interview for an entry level job at Nike. She spent 17 years there, where she led businesses including Nike Women and Nike Skateboarding, and worked on the launch of the Nike Running and Training Club apps. In 2019 she left Nike to co-found venture capital firm NEXT VENTURES, focused on early stage investments across health and wellness in companies like Oura ring and Outside. She serves on the boards of Cofertility, Ramble Campgrounds, Sage Hospitality, University of Oregon’s Knight Campus, Outdoor Afro and USA Cycling.

Rick Turoczy has been working in, on, and around the Portland, Oregon, startup community for roughly 30 years. He is the cofounder and general manager of PIE (Portland Incubator Experiment), a 15 year experiment exploring how established entities — like corporations, educational institutions, and government — can collaborate with startup communities for mutual benefit. Partners in that experiment have included Autodesk, Coca-Cola, Daimler, Google, Intel, Nike, Prosper Portland, Puppet, the State of Oregon, Stoel Rives, Target, and Wieden+Kennedy, among others. Over the years, Rick has also helped start Built Oregon, Portland Startup Week, Oregon Story Board, Silicon Florist, and TechfestNW. For more on his perspective on building community, see his TEDxPortland talk.

Join Better Portland for a casual morning coffee to connect with members, our community, and local business by supporting different businesses in the Portland area.

Save the Date / Location TBA

Bring a friend, no RSVP required!

Join Better Portland for a casual morning coffee to connect with members, our community, and local business by supporting different businesses in the Portland area.

Based General Store
1136 SW Alder St, Portland, OR 97205

Bring a friend, no RSVP required!

Join the Office of Small Business for the launch of Show Up for Small Business, an ongoing collaboration with Better Portland, PIE, Latino Founders, and Built Oregon.

The idea is simple: We pick the spot. You support the businesses. 

Every month, we’ll choose a different neighborhood or business district. Then, it's up to you to show up and do your part by shopping, grabbing a beverage, or dining at the small businesses in that area. No agenda. No speeches. Just all of us celebrating the amazing small businesses that make Portland unique.

This month, we’re starting with Ankeny Alley on Tuesday, April 29, starting at 5 pm. We will all meet at Dan & Louis Oyster Bar (208 SW Ankeny St). From there, we invite folks to wander and grab food, drinks, or goods from all the great businesses in the area like Kaizen Sushi, Angelina's Greek Gyros, Xin Ding Dumpling House, District Bar, Luna Bar,  Baes Fried Chicken, Solstice Bar, and Voodoo Doughnut.